I think Hamrlik has been playing a little too much lately.
He should be playing 20 minutes top, not 22+ minutes a game.
This is why Montreal needs to get a solid top 4 d-men that can play 22+ minutes.
Someone who can play second PP and some Pk time.
Gorges should be paired up with Bouillon or Brisebois on the 3rd pairing

Bouillon is a very good number 6 d-man. Brisebois is playing more games than expected because O'byrne just failed to secure his spot. But as a number 7 d-man with experience and cheap, you could not find many others like Brisebois around the league.

Would you prefer Niinimaa ?

Gainey has enough good material in his hand to deal for another d-man, a top-four with offensive skills, or a good tough and reliable number 5.

Tell me how do the Habs continue to win with these 2 jokes in the lineup, especially when they are paired together, it is downright scary, it would be amazing to get a steady defence defencement back there to take bouillon's place, still obvious need of a powerplay specialist back there(not kaberle) to replace brisbois

For the money he makes, I don't think he's delivered. He turns over the puck a ton in the defensive zone, and dumps the puck a lot in the offensive zone. Price and Halak have bailed him out, more than most blueliners on this team.

He gets beat a lot more to the outside than I expect a veteran would, and for his size.
Brutal? No. Overpaid? Yeah.

I think Hamrlik has been playing a little too much lately.
He should be playing 20 minutes top, not 22+ minutes a game.
This is why Montreal needs to get a solid top 4 d-men that can play 22+ minutes.
Someone who can play second PP and some Pk time.
Gorges should be paired up with Bouillon or Brisebois on the 3rd pairing

Hamrlik is averaging 21:57min/GP since the beginning of the year.
Hamrlik, Breezer, Cube and Gorges should be playing less?..

He's been a little worse than last year, but he's still solid. 22Min is good enough for him.

Minnesota have one of the best D in the league, in terms of top 4, it's very comparable to ours, except we only have Markov that's capable to play on our PP.
The real difference comes from their 5-6th Ds. Skoula/Bergeron average 19 and 17Min/Game, while Breezer/Bouillon put up 16Min each.

I think making all of our top 4Ds play a little less would be beneficial, so stronger 5-6th Ds are really what we need, like Skoula/Bergeron. The offensive production of Bergeron is also to be noted.

Both are serviceable defenseman however Breezy is a number 7 emergency defenseman and Bouillon ideally is a number 6. Unfortunately both play bigger roles than they should.

On the ice i am completely comfortable with Bouillon. He is just much much more solid defensively then Brisebois. He just doesn't have a good first pass however he is very capable of carrying the puck out of his zone. Brisebois is just BRUTAL defensively and his minor offensive contributions aren't enough to make up for it.

For the money he makes, I don't think he's delivered. He turns over the puck a ton in the defensive zone, and dumps the puck a lot in the offensive zone. Price and Halak have bailed him out, more than most blueliners on this team.

He gets beat a lot more to the outside than I expect a veteran would, and for his size.
Brutal? No. Overpaid? Yeah.

Price and Halak are there to make saves, if they didn't bail out their D then they wouldn't be good goalies. He also has 106blocked shots(team leading), so he helps our his Goalies a bunch as well.

Hamrlik was good last reg.season and was hands down our best D in the POs.
Right now, he's playing as a 3rd D.
Markov has more turnovers than Hamrlik, but the both of them lead the team in terms of takeovers.

No Dman can be perfect, they all have their flaws and make their mistakes, but he's done a pretty decent job this season and without any of our top 3, we look lost. Is that overpayment?..not sure.

Is Kovalev overpaid??..Lang??..A.Kost?..Tanguay??..
Hamrlik is crucial to our team because he brings stability in our top 3. That's important to us, and we're 6th in terms of GA, so our D can't be that bad.

For the money he makes, I don't think he's delivered. He turns over the puck a ton in the defensive zone, and dumps the puck a lot in the offensive zone. Price and Halak have bailed him out, more than most blueliners on this team.

He gets beat a lot more to the outside than I expect a veteran would, and for his size.
Brutal? No. Overpaid? Yeah.

True, but we need to overpay to entice UFA's to come here and play...at least we did at that time...this summer could be a different story.

The only thing this year's Canadiens lack is motivation and discipline.

They truly lack the ability to shut down a team a la Boston when they are up in the third. Last night was ANOTHER prime example. This team hasn't learned how to shut down the opposition whether that is do to coaching, the players, or players buying into the system.The fact is, it isn't there.

When I first read the title, my first thought was. "Hey what a great name for a kids cartoon".

I've had no problems with either Breezby or Cube. They've both played their roles adequately, which is pretty much all you can ask for. I was hoping that Breezby didn't have to play as much as he has. But due to injuries and O'Byrne not being quite ready. Carbo has had no choice but to put him in there.

For some reason I've always been a big fan of Cube's. Sure he makes mistakes, and if there is a leg in his path. It's a sure bet that he's going to hit it with his point shot. But the guy has heart and he battles like few others on the team. Plus no one on the team stands up for his team mates *maybe Kostopolous*, then our little Cube.

Brisebois brings experience. There are a lot of key situations (eg. a 2 on 1) and since Brisebois has been in the NHL for a long time and since we're only paying him 700,000, its a great deal.

Bouillon is a hard working and gritty player.

The only thing this year's Canadiens lack is motivation and discipline.

Knowing how to play a 2 on 1 has nothing to do with experience. It's taught in novice to take away the pass and let the goalie concentrate on the shooter and I would imagine upon reaching the NHL a defenseman would have faced lots of 2 on 1's. Even with all his experience Brisebois defensive zone coverage is terrible. Every goal scored against him is pretty much him not being on his man as was seen by Ottawa's first goal last night. It is also embarrassing watching him try and knock guys off the puck with that little fairy push of his. Players on the other team must love seeing him on the ice instead of Komi.

I'm gonna throw a couple names out there...Karl Dykhuis, Scott Lachance, Patrick Traverse remember when Brisebois was our number 2 behind Weinrich? things could be much worse. Breezy makes me alittle nervous every now and than but he is our 3rd pairing Dman. Bouillion for the most part is solid. Take it easy

Why all the Breeze hate...I mean he can be playing like Lidstrom and people would still hate on the guy...he's having a good year...excellent first pass and has been quietly been putting up points...not to mention some solid play in his own end...D-Men are gonna make gafs...They play more then forwards and have a lot more responsibility...I played D for 8 years in various leagues and its probably the toughest position to master...Most of you whom sit back and criticize are what I call Couch Jocks and have never played the game...and probably can't even skate...Patrice has been solid...and we should be more supportive...instead of nit picking!

Why all the Breeze hate...I mean he can be playing like Lidstrom and people would still hate on the guy...he's having a good year...excellent first pass and has been quietly been putting up points...not to mention some solid play in his own end...D-Men are gonna make gafs...They play more then forwards and have a lot more responsibility...I played D for 8 years in various leagues and its probably the toughest position to master...Most of you whom sit back and criticize are what I call Couch Jocks and have never played the game...and probably can't even skate...Patrice has been solid...and we should be more supportive...instead of nit picking!

You're talking to a bunch of people that have no clue what system the Habs are playing and how important Brisebois first pass is to initiating the attack.

Brisebois has exceeded my expectations this season in a big way, and his passing is a huge part of it.

Umm Im not sure what Bouillon has done to deserve such harshness? The guy gives it all every game for us, sure hes not the most talented but he knows that and he plays a simple physical game which we really need. And Breezer isnt as bad as last year, plus hes doing good on the PP. I hate these negative threads about our own team.

So when is it okay to criticize Montreal? You chastise people for criticizing the team after a loss, asking where are their criticisms after wins. Then during winning streaks, you imply that the team is above criticism.

Tell me how do the Habs continue to win with these 2 jokes in the lineup, especially when they are paired together, it is downright scary, it would be amazing to get a steady defence defencement back there to take bouillon's place, still obvious need of a powerplay specialist back there(not kaberle) to replace brisbois

I agree also...Bouillion is kind of spunky but that is all I can say good about either